The early settlement of the area centred on the agricultural plantation of San Jose del Pilar, founded by Adolfo Sourdeaux in 1862. Ten years later Sourdeaux established the town of San Miguel. In 1889 it became the capital of the former county of General Sarmiento.

The first astronomical observatory in Argentina was founded in 1935 in San Miguel. The city is the home of a Jesuit seminary and an agricultural experimental station. Dairying is important in the lands west of San Miguel, which were formerly devoted to beef-cattle ranching. San Miguel experienced rapid growth in the 1960s and ’70s. Two major railways, running west-northwest from Buenos Aires, and the national highway system serve San Miguel. Pop. (2001) 253,086; (2010) 256,190.

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